So, we’re four recipes into Make, Bake, Celebrate by Mrs Bun, The Baker, (£12.99) and we, my family and my neighbours are loving it.
The blurb says you can move from being a kitchen zero to baking hero, and I am on the way to achieving that in my house thanks to this easy-to-follow book.
They munched through the chocolate muffins in minutes – and that fudge icing was unbelievable – but the muffins by themselves were superb and I didn’t feel they needed the totally decadent topping. The recipe is from Grandma Bun and it promised light and moist muffins. It delivered, big style
The Festival flapjacks didn’t last long and I had bags to store for later. It was a piece of cake. Next time, I will have the right size of baking tray and make them thicker, my problem, not the recipes.
The cinnamon buns took more effort. I could have done with a little more cinnamon, my fault, despite tasting the mix before cooking, and my yeast may have been a tad old, but they looked great and tasted fine. They were especially effective with a cut of hot coffee.
For dinner, we tried latkes, fried in oil and a staple of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, celebrations. So easy to do – be prepared for tears when you grate the onion – with only four ingredients, potato, onion, flour and one egg, and the six produced tasted great.
The idea of the book was to come up with a year of celebration bakes from New Year to Christmas, with inspiration from around the world. I’ve been inspired and there are 29 other recipes which I must try.
Mrs Bun is from Oxfordshire and does online and in-person cooking classes for children, from two years upwards, and adults. The recipes are so easy and it is no surprise that she has a teaching background, having graduated from Bristol University and developing her skills during 20 years in schools in the UK and abroad.
She also works in the community, from children’s centres, housing groups, Scouts, and charities including Childhood Tumour Trust, schools and nurseries.
A hob safety guide and advice before you bake is also included, and there is an easy-to-follow index. I’m loving it so what’s next, probably Mexican bowls and guacamole. Looks great and also healthy.
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